The theory and design of gas-discharge microwave attenuators

The theory of the interaction between a d.c. gas discharge and an r.f. field is considered and expressions developed for the complex conductivity of the discharge. The simple Lorentz theory is shown to give values of complex conductivity not very different from those derived with more detailed analyses. Problems connected with the gas discharge including that of noise production are considered. Practical microwave attenuators developed by the authors are described in detail. Two main classes of device are considered: (a) devices with resonant structures, and (b) distributed devices.